What we are
by ViridianOleanderson
Summary: Naruto is paranoid and wants to be Hokage. Sasuke is silent and wants to avenge his clan. Sakura is hyper and wants to stay with her beloved friend forever. They're all a little messed up, but, they fearlessly strive to accomplish their dreams... or so the tale tells. Paranoid!Naruto Humble!Sasuke Hyper!Sakura.
1. Chapter 1

**What are we?**

 **Summary:** Naruto is paranoid and wants to be Hokage. Sasuke is silent and wants to avenge his clan. Sakura is hyper and wants to stay with her beloved friend forever. They're all a little messed up but, they fearlessly strive to accomplish their dreams. Paranoid!Naruto Humble!Sasuke Hyper!Sakura.

 **"Life is cruel, but, so is death."**

* * *

When Kakashi meets his new team he thinks the Gods hate him. Or maybe the Sandaime Hokage hates him. Either way, someone clearly hates him.

He had heard stories about these three. Sandaime-sama had referred to them using his favourite line that always made Kakashi want to throw his head to the heavens and sigh the loudest sigh ever heard in the history of Konoha.

" _A hopeless fool, a skilled prodigy, and a clever Kunoichi."_

However, Kakashi doesn't quite see how all three of these children fit into that description.

 _Paranoid_. _Mute_. And _Hyper_. Are probably more accurate.

* * *

Everybody in the village knows Uzumaki Naruto as the Fox-Demon child. However, they also know him as the kid who jumps at the sight of his own shadow. The Freak of Konoha.

Naruto is a jumpy boy, nervous and jittery. Years of low mumbles and weird comments that make no sense have turned him into an incredibly superstitious person who believes in all things paranormal.

" _I'm being haunted."_ Is something he says on a day-to-day basis.

His superstitions have lead people to believe he's crazy, and if they didn't already order their kids to stay away from him the parents of Konohagakure would definitely put up restrictions. Even Nara Shikamaru kept at a distance.

Naruto sits in the back corner of the classroom. Staring out the window and muttering nonsense under his breath. Iruka-sensei rarely bothers with him anymore - oh no, he doesn't ignore him, he's just given up on trying to bring the child out of his world of delusion - and most of his classmates keep a wide berth around him.

 _Two metres_ is the measured distance, they say.

He's been the cause of a lot of problems in their class and many students, and students parents, have come up to Iruka-sensei with complaints about the young child. But, what can he do? Sandaime Hokage-sama is adamant that Naruto remain under his tutelage - _he claims it's healthier for him to be around children of his own age_. So Iruka-sensei is forced to put his foot down and defend the child.

 _It isn't easy._

There is a day when Naruto is 6-years-old, sitting in the back of class drawing pictures of ugly foxes, and screaming lizards on his notebook. Yamanaka Ino walks into the classroom wearing a fresh new outfit that makes her look too old for her age, her hair - _now much longer_ \- tied up in a ponytail.

Everybody, girls and boys alike, stare as she saunters into the room, making whispered comments behind their hands as she shows off her pretty figure that can barely be called a figure.

When Naruto looks up to see what all the fuss is about he takes one look at Ino's outfit and screams.

He jumps out of his chair and practically tackles the little girl to the ground. His hands are all over her abdomen, pinching and pulling at the exposed skin of her tummy like a demented bird.

All through Ino's wails Naruto screams something that is lost in the sea of cries and shouts.

 _It's the loudest their class has ever been._

Iruka-sensei rushes into the class, horrified at what he sees in front of him and quickly pries the estranged boy off of the little girl and gapes when he sees blood spilling around on the floor. He calls for Suzume to look after Ino, and asks Mizuki to take over with the kids, then he rushes away from the Academy, Naruto still screaming and squirming under his arm.

When he bursts through the doors of the Hokage's office he deposits Naruto in front of the Village Leader and locks the doors. He reports what had just happened and shows Hokage-sama the blood on Naruto's hands, the bits of skin stuck under his stained fingernails and shouts when Naruto still tries to get away, snapping at his hands.

" _Let me go! He's going to eat her!"_ He screams over and over again.

"Hokage-sama…" Iruka-sensei panics grabbing hold of Naruto's waist and keeping him at his side, despite the boy's constant struggles and strength, Iruka is still a Shinobi of Konohagakure, a Chunin, he was more experienced in handling hostile prisoners than he let on.

The Hokage stares at them, a pensive look in his eyes, and takes a long puff of the pipe in his mouth.

"Thank you, for bringing him to me, Iruka. I'll take it from here." He dismisses and takes the boy into his own arms, as Iruka bows and leaves the room the Hokage places the child on his lap and pets his hair.

Naruto stills instantly.

It calms him every time.

Sandaime Hokage pets his hair whenever he sees him. Ruffling the yellow spikes and laughing heartily when Naruto panics and tries to put them all back at the right angle. He's the only one who actually helps, so he visits the Old Man as often as possible, _he's the safest_ , he says when people ask why he's bothering their beloved Hokage.

They don't understand him, but, honestly, who _would_?

"Naruto… Why did you do that to poor Ino-chan? You know you hurt her a lot, right?"

Naruto doesn't answer for a while, his mind still lost in the serenity of the Old Man's hand on his head, but when he does his voice is quiet, like a ghostly whisper. "I didn't want to hurt. I wanted to save her. He was going to eat her. I had to save her." He confesses.

Hiruzen stops and looks down at him, "Who was going to eat her, Naruto?"

" _... Raijin._ "

After that day the Sandaime Hokage issued a new law. All products on Paranormal Activity and mentions of the supernatural were to be kept at an absolute minimum around Uzumaki Naruto. Which meant no mentioning of anything Mythical that could poison the little boy's mind, like the superstition that showing your belly button will cause the God, Raijin, to strike you down and eat you.

 _After that day, Ino wore bandages wrapped around her abdomen and ran away whenever she saw the monster who had scratched long red scars on her belly._

Luckily people took the issue very seriously after hearing what happened to little Ino-chan - who became known around the entire village because of the ' _Fox-Demon's attack'_.

Nobody dared to mention anything that could set off the child and turn him into a bloodthirsty monster.

Nobody dared mention anything to him at all.

Adults kept their silence and gave him whatever he needed, with only their angry glares to see him off - _glares that he paid no attention to, so immersed in his own little world_. Children ran away and didn't speak to him at all, too afraid that he may attack them next.

Sandaime Hokage charged Iruka-sensei to care for his mental health. However, he chose to do it didn't matter so long as Naruto didn't get any more twisted ideas and try to 'set things right' again. The Sandaime Hokage claimed himself too old to look after the child forever, he was setting things for the future, so that when he died Naruto would have someone he trusted to look after him.

 _He wouldn't dare leave the child out in the open for Danzo to manipulate._

At a loss, Iruka decided to give Naruto extra lessons, leaving him no opportunity to escape, and having no excuse and no reason to return home to his pristinely empty apartment Naruto stayed every day after school.

Iruka taught him new myths and legends, romanticising details and giving the boy books that would change his views on the supernatural. And being Naruto, he wanted to know everything there was to know about these 'new' ideas and theories, every story, every fairytale, he absorbed into his mind like a sponge.

 _(However, with his normal studies he was still absolutely horrible)_

At the age of 8, Naruto came across two boys bullying a little girl in the snowy forest. Believing the girl to be the famous _Yuki-Onna_ from Iruka-sensei's tale _The Princess in the Snow_ he rushed forward to save her. The two boys were angry at the intrusion, but the second they saw who was interrupting their fun they ran for the hills.

The little ' _Yuki-Onna'_ had never been so grateful in her life. Pale as the snow, with blue lips, and her own tears frozen on her cheeks, she looked up to see her saviour.

 _Her saviour_.

Naruto, huffed eyes wild and wide when the boys ran away. Turning back to the _Yuki-Onna_ he grinned. Looking at her he was a little confused, she was a lot smaller than what Iruka-sensei described her as, but her eyes were wide and white as a blizzard, her lips blue and her hair was the colour of the night sky. He was sure this was the mythical _Yuki-Onna_ despite her size.

He quietly pulled her to her feet, brushing the snow off of her pretty kimono, and tilted his head to the side. Iruka-sensei said the _Yuki-Onna_ was always cold, and that's why she was always wandering through the snow. So, maybe… if he gave her something warm she could go home… Back to her family and friends on the other side.

Oblivious, he pulled off his woolly red scarf and placed it on her shoulders, winding it around her neck and tossing the end so it fell over her head, he smiled.

 _Mission accomplished._

"There." He announced brightly, "Now you can go home."

She only blinked, her stutters muffled by the fabric as he pushed her towards the forest, through the thick snow, and hummed.

Naruto ran straight to Ichiraku's ramen house and recounted the entire encounter to a baffled Iruka-sensei who choked on his noodles as the boy told him about the ' _little Yuki-Onna'_ he met in the woods.

Neither of them were aware that the lost _Yuki-Onna_ was actually the Hyūga clan's heiress, Hinata, who, after that day, developed a crush on the boy whom everybody avoided.

When Naruto reached the age of 9-years, Uchiha Sasuke broke his nose.

It was in no way a mistake. Sasuke's left fist cranked back and slammed right into the tip of his nose.

Naruto had been talking about the Massacre of the Uchiha Clan. The reason Sasuke saw the need to break his nose; he said Sasuke was cursed. That obviously didn't sit well with the boy, right after Sasuke broke his nose Naruto screamed to the high heavens.

It was a sound they hadn't heard in years and the students of the Academy all ran to preserve their little lives. Ino ran straight home, her eyes welling with tears and clutching at her tummy.

Only Sasuke and Naruto were still there.

Words were thrown at the dark-haired boy. Crazed nonsense about curses and hauntings and maybe a few rude mentionings of the Devil, but, nobody really knew what was said between them. They only knew that after that day the two were never seen together again.

Naruto would shiver whenever Sasuke was around him and try to sneak as far away as possible, while Sasuke chose instead to ignore his existence entirely.

Every now and then Naruto could be seen glaring after the boy mumbling under his breath.

The Sandaime Hokage was greatly impressed with his progress. At 11-years-old the Uzumaki Naruto who screamed and jumped at the sight of his own shadow was still there, but he now seemed harmless, acting upon his urges to 'set things right' through verbal communication (even though he rarely succeeded).

It was that same year that Iruka-sensei told him about the Ninja who were killed in action. It wasn't a myth or a legend but true stories about men and women who had lost their lives in the field of battle.

He called them the _Bōrei_.

 _The ruined ones_.

Their stories were the most tragic by far, and Naruto listened to each tale, captivated.

He learned that Iruka-sensei had lost his parents during an attack not too many years ago. That an evil demon had rampaged the village and slaughtered so many…

So many were lost to the monster.

" _The people, those Shinobi died noble deaths. And every day… every day they wander the Earth trying to find their way back to the other side… But, it would have been better if they hadn't died at all…"_

Lessons ended earlier that day and Naruto spent the remaining hours reading the _Legend of the Shodai Hokage_ (a gift from the Old Man for going nine months without an incident) on the Yondaime Hokage's head. Thinking about what Iruka-sensei said he traced every word in the book, letting the story embrace him.

When he descended he told Iruka-sensei he wanted to be Hokage, so he could stop all the wars and no one would have to die anymore.

" _There'll be no Bōrei wandering around because they would all go straight to the Pure Land."_

Was what he told him, his expression resembling a sulky pup. His eyes, however, held a fire, one that said he would not allow anyone else to wander the planes, lost with no direction, because they had died for the sake of a village.

Iruka-sensei almost cried, whether out of horror or pride, no one knew for sure.

~xXx~

* * *

 **Author's Notes:**

I was supposed to be writing a speech but I wrote this instead. Well, deadlines have never been my strong suit, I guess. I happen to like this chapter/story, so I decided to share it.

Read, comment and enjoy, or not, your choice.

 **Disclaimer:** I own (claim) nothing. Just the story/plot, which I came up with in the early morning.


	2. Chapter 2

**What are we?**

 **Chapter 2 Summary:** Naruto is assigned to his first Genin team. He's both overjoyed and devastated with who he's been teamed with... And these two outcasts are quite the interesting duo...

" **This is the life we live, so, why not live it?"**

* * *

Naruto had spent the morning preparing for this day. He had brushed his teeth, washed his face, and made sure his hair was in perfect condition before checking his reflection in the mirror. It was his usual routine, one that Iruka-sensei disapproved of, but it's just what felt natural to him.

Three months he had been waiting for this day, and now, it was finally here. He was finally going to become a Genin. He picked up the headband Iruka-sensei had given him last night and swiped his thumb over the symbol engraved on the metal.

It had once belonged to Iruka-sensei. He had gifted it to him for helping capture Mizuki. Such a petty man, he had let the demons in his head overpower him. Iruka-sensei had been upset about that but Naruto couldn't see why. It's not like Mizuki was dead or anything, his life didn't really matter… Did it? He hadn't dared to ask Iruka-sensei… it seemed wrong to ask something like that…

But, he was pretty sure he had once read that the only life that truly matters is the life of the great or something like that. He doesn't quite remember but that sounds about right.

"Okay…" He whispers and lifts the band of fabric to his forehead, three simple knots - because he still can't bring himself to tie one out of fear of it falling off - and stares at his reflection in the mirror.

He looks different. The headband makes him feel different. Strong. Like the Shodai Hokage when he faced off against the monstrous Uchiha Madara.

Uchiha… That name reminded him of that… _thing_ in his class. Sasuke. He shivered at the memory of the dark boy who was covered in shadows. He knew that becoming a Genin meant being on a team with other Genin. He didn't care who he was with as long as he wasn't with _that_ he would be happy.

That boy was surely the embodiment of death itself.

And he wanted nothing to do with him.

* * *

 _If he is death_ , he thinks as he huddles in his seat, _then she is surely life_.

Naruto watches as she enters the classroom. She is always bright and full of life. There are no demons around her, no cloudy shadows, nothing that could bring on the darkness that haunts their world. She is a beacon of light that shines endlessly without wavering.

Iruka-sensei had once told him about fairies. They're small creatures that flit about on wings and bring good luck and make flowers grow, always laughing and smiling. Stuff like that. Like happiness.

Naruto believes the girl in his class is a fairy. She's exactly as Iruka-sensei had once described them to look like. With pink hair and bright green eyes, she's also very short for a girl and has red lips, the colour of cherries. Everything about her screams fairy.

He decidedly ignores the dark cloud that enters behind her and focuses his attention elsewhere. His book his burning beneath his palm, the itch to read the words it shelters growing stronger until he can't contain his desire. He wants to learn, to know more so that he can figure out a way to eliminate the _Bōrei_ from the world.

"Alright, class!" Iruka-sensei calls as he enters the room, "Sit down. I want to congratulate you all for graduating to Genin, I guess all those days of hard work really paid off, huh." Only a few of the former students laughed, they were all too excited to know their teams to care about their former teachers' humour. "Anyway… I'll be assigning you all to your teams so keep quiet, and absolutely - under no circumstances - are you to speak out against placements. These teams were put together by Sandaime-sama himself and his judgement is final. Understood?"

"Yes, sensei."

"Good, now…"

Naruto had taken to ignoring him, it wasn't done purposely, it's just that this passage in the book was more interesting than listening to who was going with who on missions. After all, the only person who really mattered right now was himself, and how he was going to become Hokage.

' _It's something that hurts me inside… So long had I awaited the sweet bliss of peace that I almost turned my gaze from discord. Foolish, I was. How could I believe that peace was possible when people of, not only my homeland but the country itself are suffering. I had hoped that this union of clans would bring about a new age of shinobi, one of peace and freedom, but, as I had previously discovered, not everybody was willing to conform from the old ways… Life is hard for those who lead.'_

"Life is hard for those who lead, huh…"

Naruto frowned. The Shodai Hokage believed that life was hard. Even though he doesn't really know what it means to live a hard life he feels that it may be something that the Shinobi of all villages may feel… Iruka-sensei did say that shinobi are leaders… so maybe that means their hardships are what keeps them tied to the Earth after they pass… Instead of ascending to the Pure Land they're stuck here… trying to continue their roles as leaders.

 _So… if I were to erase the hardships of life Bōrei would be able to go on to the other side?_ He deliberated on this… It made sense in his mind.

"Uzumaki Naruto…" Iruka-sensei called his name, Naruto's head shot up. Had he been caught not paying attention again? He hoped not. As much as he liked Iruka-sensei he didn't like when he hit him on the head with all those hard books.

 _Oh, wait._ He remembered, Iruka-sensei is assigning teams right now so this must be my team. He was excited - sort of - with who would he be paired? His eyes wandered over to the ball of energy at the front of the class.

"Haruno Sakura…" The Fairy jumped up, her arms in the air and a string of words leaving her lips.

Were his thoughts being heard? Did the fates decide he was going to be on the same team with the Fairy?! Excitement bubbled inside of him. _Yes!_

"And… Uchiha Sasuke." _NO!_ "Alright, that's all for Team 7. Next, we have… Yamanaka Ino…"

Naruto chewed his lips, biting so hard to keep them together that blood dribbled down his chin. It was hard for him not to jump and scream like he did when he was 9-years-old. He had to keep the hysteria inside or else something bad might happen. But, it was just. So. _Hard_.

More than anything, more than stars, more than life, he wanted to be on a team that didn't have that _THING_ involved with it.

"Hmm…" Naruto gasped when he felt something tap against his forehead. _What was that? A ghost? A spirit? Is someone trying to communicate with me from the other side?_ His head rushes with different ideas. "You know… he's a lot shorter than I thought he'd be."

When warm hands grasped his face, pinching and stretching his cheeks he realised that this was no spirit speaking to him but the Fairy herself. She crouched on top of his desk, sitting back on her heels and inspecting his face with intense concentration.

Naruto looked into her bright eyes filled with awe.

 _She's so close to me._

He had never actually spoken to Fairy or seen her up close, always too shy to be around her in fear that she might fly off. But, now… being so close to her he thought something ethereal stood before him. _She's so pretty_ … He thinks, looking at her Fae-like features that only enhance her beauty.

"What do you think, Sasuke-kun?"

"..."

He's so entranced by the hypnotising swirl of her eyes that he doesn't even hear her. _What is she saying? I don't know. Do you think she has magic?_ He doesn't realise until she jerks and jumps away from him that he was about to touch her hair, the strands of pink so close that he can almost taste the mystic properties. Is it weird that he had been waiting years just to get close enough to touch her? He doesn't think it is.

"What are you doing?!" She shrieks and her voice is like that of an offended siren, "Don't touch my hair, you weird, little pervert! Did you see that, Sasuke-kun!? He's so weird. And he smells funny. Like olives, or spicy fruits… that's kind of annoying." Then she looks down at him, her green eyes hardened in their judgement, yet… something else swirls in those eyes that hide nothing… Something like… glass.

" _You're annoying._ "

Naruto's eyes widen. He hadn't been expecting that. _Why would she call me annoying?_ Iruka-sensei said that fairies were kind, unjudging creatures that help you… but this feeling hurt him. He doesn't know what it is, he's never felt it before, but his lips press together. He needs to suppress the scream that's threatening to tear from his throat. It wouldn't do well to disappoint Iruka-sensei and the Old Man after such a long time without incident.

When Sakura marches away, her pretty aura returning and sparkling as she jumps out the window, Sasuke stays by the boy's desk. Silently studying his reaction. When he has his verdict he sighs and leaves the room.

* * *

Naruto's still in class when everybody else leaves. All of the other teams had gone off with their sensei's and left him alone in the classroom. Not even the Fairy or _it_ have returned yet. That leaves him on his own and somewhat settled.

It's always easier to think when he was alone.

Still, he wonders where they could be, and where their sensei could be. It's a mystery that muddles his mind and despite Iruka-sensei's assurances that their team's sensei will arrive soon, Naruto can't help but feel suspicious. Where could they be? His mind draws over a dozen conclusions and he almost misses Iruka-sensei leaving - " _I'm off to the staffroom, Naruto. Don't go anywhere until the rest of your team has returned, alright."_ \- his hand lifting to give a simple thumbs up.

" _But - can't it wait?! Please! I don't want to do it now… Why can't I do it later? But - No - I don't -"_ From the window, Naruto can hear someone talking. Which he finds intriguing seeing as how the classroom is on the second floor of the academy. Whoever it is would have to be an excellent climber or flying if they were outside the window.

 _Unless it's a ghost! Or a talking animal!_ He's bubbling with excitement. Jumping out of his seat Naruto rushes towards the other side of the classroom. He's startled back as something sweet and fluffy is shoved in his face.

 _What?_

"Here. These are for you." A voice says as the fluffy objects, which he slowly realises are flowers, are pushed further into his face. He sneezes as they tickle his nose and catches a glimpse of pink behind it. _What is that? A… Fairy…_ He questions confused. _Why is a fairy giving him flowers?_ Slowly he reaches out to grasp them.

"Sasuke-kun said that I wasn't nice to you so I got you these flowers. I went to Senju Forest to get them for you. They have really pretty flowers there. Have you ever been to Senju Forest? I go there all the time. It's quiet, and fun and the animals are all really cute and kind. Sasuke-kun doesn't like it though. He says the shrubs always make him sleepy so he goes to the Lake to play. Do you like playing?"

When the flowers - _an array of orange lilies and white daisies with some red poppies, wrapped in a sheet of white paper_ \- are no longer blocking his field of vision he sees that it isn't some random fairy giving him flowers but the same fairy who is to be his teammate - _Sakura_ , he remembers, _her name is Sakura_.

"Ah-" He's nervous, his voice is stuck in his throat. "Ah… Thank you very much!" He ends up shouting in her face.

Sakura has to make a visible effort not to run and jump on him - _she's been told many times that that isn't okay_ \- and instead twists the beads around her waist over her knuckles. She mutters under her breath for at least a full minute before exhaling and saying with a very strained voice:

"You-are wel-come."

Naruto grins. And then the door to the classroom slides open and they all scatter.

* * *

 **Author's Notes:** This story is stuck in my head, I'm just going to try and see how it goes.

There are no pairings in this story, just very strong friendship and platonic-partnerships. I feel the need to point this out for anyone who may dislike or like a pairing and are interpreting certain interactions as romance - I understand if you are. I'm just trying to make the relationships between characters display different bonds with different strengths and actions that suit their characteristics. This is mostly about bonding and growing.

In addition this will contain certain Canon elements in regards to relationships. Such as Naruto hating Sasuke and pining after Sakura. These are things I've always actually liked about the Team Seven dynamic, mostly because they all eventually grow out/adapt/ or evolve from the feelings they originally held.

 **Also, in response to Suzululu4moe:** Sakura and Ino aren't really friends. Sakura's beloved friend is someone else... This is where the Canon element applies as the aspect of their 'dreams' are still the same. Hokage. Vengeance. And squealing. Sorry if this disappoints. As for the Hyūgas they have the same opinion as everybody else. _He's crazy_.

Thank you, read, comment, and enjoy - or don't, your choice.


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